Theodore Roosevelt’s Square Deal Chapter 16 Section 3 Page 535

Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt Progressive Reformer Governor of NY in 1898 Party bosses wanted him out, so they had him elected to the vice- presidency. William McKinley was the President At the time, the VP had very little power, so there was not much Roosevelt could do to reform corrupt business

How did Teddy become president? President William McKinley was assassinated by Leon Czolgosz. Teddy now held the highest office in the land He was a very energetic and lively person

Teddy’s style of governing Most presidents in the 1800’s were hands-off Not him…He saw the White House as a: Bully Pulpit: a powerful platform to publicize important issues and seek support for policies.

Coal strike in Pennsylvania (1902) 150,000 coal workers went on strike for: Higher wages, shorter hours, and recognition of their union Roosevelt knew if this was not resolved, it would become a major issue Roosevelt wanted the strikers and mine owners to agree to arbitration Arbitration: two opposing sides agree to allow a third party to settle a dispute. The miners agreed to it but the coal owners did not.

Coal Strike Roosevelt threatened the owners or he would take over their company. OUTCOME: Arbitrators gave the workers shorter days, higher pay but did not require the owners to recognize the union. This was the first time that the federal government intervened on a strike to protect the rights of workers.

The Square Deal Defined his presidency He promised to “see that each person is given a square deal, because he is entitled to no more and receive no less.” The Square Deal: Limits the power of trusts Promote public health and safety Improve working conditions

Regulating Big Business In business, competition is healthy. If there is competition, then companies will compete for your business They will do whatever they need to do to bring you in as a customer. For example: Cell phone companies. Which company do you have? They will offer you the best deals in order for you to stick with them.

Tycoons .A wealthy, powerful person in business or industry J.P. Morgan, James J. Hill, and E.H. Harriman joined their railroad companies together to eliminate competition New Company: Northwest Securities Company They dominated the shipping industry from Chicago to the Northwest.

Roosevelt Steps In The federal government sued Northwest Securities for violating the Sherman Anti- Trust Act Sherman Anti-Trust Act: A law that outlawed the creation of monopolies to limit free trade. Why is the board game Monopoly called monopoly?? What is the point of the game?

Acts to Protect Consumers… Elkins Act: Outlawed railroads from receiving rebates Customers paid the same rates for shipping Hepburn Act Strengthened the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC). Power to set maximum railroad rates.

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair Sinclair was a “muckraker” He wrote about the horrors that happened in the meat packing industry. Ex: Rat feces in the meat, diseased and dead animals were processed. We will read more about this later. When Roosevelt read this book, he was outraged and launched an investigation into this industry. Sinclair was right.

The Response to “The Jungle” Meat Inspection Act: Required federal inspection of meat shipped across state lines Pure Food & Drug Act Forbid the use of harmful ingredients in medicine and food Required food and medicine to carry accurate ingredient labels